The Black Peril/plot
Chapter 1: Forced Down Out on a joyride with the Vandal, Biggles and Algy are forced down by fog and take shelter in a lonely creek in Norfolk. There Biggles and Algy encounter a mysterious huge flying boat landing near them, guided by underwater landing lights controlled by a secret switch in a nearby abandoned ex-wartime pillbox. Algy returns to the Vandal but Biggles is not to be found. Chapter 2: Ginger Takes a Hand Biggles had climbed onboard the flying board to investigate and got trapped when it started up and took off. The flying boat lands somewhere along the Northumberland coast. Biggles swims ashore and is captured by the flying boat crew. The leader, whom Biggles would later call "Blackbeard" because of his appearance, questions Biggles. He tries to act the hapless civilian but this pretense is blown when some of the crew find Biggles' cigarette case with his name and photograph on it. Biggles escapes but injures his ankle. He staggers into a hut by a disused railway and finds a young man in there whom he calls "Ginger". Ginger had left Smettleworth and is on the way to London to join the R.A.F. Biggles asks Ginger to help and sends him to the nearest town to hire a car. Ginger returns but Biggles is gone--he surmises that he has been captured. Chapter 3: A Reconnaissance Flight Ginger summons Algy by telegram to Cramlington where he tells him what happened. Algy tries a reconnaissance flight with Ginger and they spot a rambling house not far from the where Ginger's hut. Chapter 4: In the Enemy Camp Biggles is indeed inside and beginning to learn a little more about the myterious operation he has stumbled onto. His captor/jailor is an ex-Dartmoor convict named Darton and his is interrogated by some people who appear to be Russians. locked in his room, he spots Ginger scouting the house. Ginger gives him a wave of recognition. Chapter 5: Rescue Ginger lights a fire to create a diversion while Algy breaks into the house and rescues Biggles. The trio escape and drive off to Newcastle to regroup. Chapter 6: Council of War Biggles submits a report but Squadron Leader Taglen from the Air Ministry and Colonel Barlow of Security Intelligence look him up at Newcastle and tell him that they found nothing of what he reported. The house has been burnt down and there is no trace of the landing lights and machinery they found in Norfolk. Biggles and Algy decide that they must continue the investigations on their own, Algy had peeped at Blackbeard's map while spying on them at Norfolk and saw many lines radiating from a spot in the Baltic to Britain. They prepare to set off and can't refuse Ginger who insists on coming along. Chapter 7: Warned Out Biggles, Algy, Ginger and Smyth take the Vandal to Holtenau, a German marine airport on the Baltic coast. Who should they meet but Blackbeard, arriving on a German pattern seaplane. Blackbeard doesn't speak to them but soon shows his influence. A customs officer comes to warn them that the weather is not good to the east and they should head west for home. The Vandal is almost crushed by an apparently clumsy boatman on a barge. They take off and head east and then find that their tanks have been drained. They run out of fuel near Danzig but fortunately manage find a source to top up again. Chapter 8: A Chapter of Adventures Next morning, they spot one of the large flying boats heading east and follow it, eventually reaching a land of forests and lakes in Russia, or so Biggles thought. Biggles goes scouting with Ginger and discovers a vast military base with rows of the large flying boats and a city of log buildings. Along a narrow track, they encounter an oncoming log train. Biggles must jump on board one of the wagons for safety and this takes him into the heart of enemy base. Hiding among the logs, Biggles overhears Blackbeard telling Darton he knows Biggles is headed towards them. Chapter 9: Ginger Strikes Biggles is captured by Blackbeard, Darton and their associates but Ginger intervenes and holds them up with a gun he had picked up while rescuing Biggles from the house. Darton tries to draw his gun and Ginger shoots him instinctively. The two then escape into the woods. Ginger is carrying a case of plans which he stole from one of the buildings. Chapter 10: Smyth Explains Biggles and Ginger reach where the Vandal was moored but find that it has gone. Smyth comes down from hiding in a tree and tells them the Vandal had been spotted by enemy scouting aircraft and Algy was forced to flee, knowing that ground troops would be sent out to them. He would pick them up at dawn from the northern end of the lake they were at. Evading enemy patrols, the party makes its way to the rendezvous but Algy does not turn up. Chapter 11: What Happened to Algy Algy had taken off but had encountered enemy patrolling aircraft everywhere and had been forced to dodged them in cloud. He finally found a lake where he could put down to hide until the time of the rendezvous but he soon found his aircraft stuck fast in the soft mud and unable to move. Chapter 12: Trailed Biggles, Ginger and Smyth spend the day in hiding. At night, Ginger decides to go off to find food. Towards dawn, Biggles hears dogs approaching. Then they spot Blackbeard's seaplane drifting towards them with someone sitting astride a float. Ginger is paddling it to them! They get on board and take off just as the dogs and the pursuing soldiers arrive and head for the lake where Algy is stuck with the Vandal. Chapter 13: Fog They meet Algy and free the Vandal, also topping up its tanks from fuel in the seaplane. The party then sets off for the nearest friendly country--Sweden. The Vandal is soon pursued by Blackbeard in his seaplane, which being faster, soon begins to overtake them. The Vandal runs out of fuel near the Swedish coast and they put down on the water. Blackbeard also lands and approaches but fortunately, both aircraft drift into a fogbank and lose sight of each other. Chapter 14: Blackbeard Speaks The Vandal comes aground and they decide to quietly tow the aircraft away from the supposed position of Blackbeard. The fog lifts and they discover that they are in Sweden. They make their way into a town (which they later learn is Christianbad) and settle down in a cafe for a much needed meal. But Blackbeard is not far behind. He has been reinforced by the crew of a large flying boat which has joined him. He enters the cafe and tells Biggles the place is surrounded and that they will be taken back to Russia. There seems no way out, but earlier, Ginger had peeled off to buy a postcard to send to his father. He spots Biggles and co. in trouble with Blackbeard and he has a plan. Suddenly Ginger bursts into the cafe with half a dozen policemen. Ginger accuses Biggles and co. of stealing his money and they are quickly arrested and bundled out of the cafe to the safety of a police cell, right under Blackbeard's nose. Chapter 15: Biggles Explains Ginger had also called the British consul at Stockholm and Hesterley, the consul's personal assistant, comes to see them. Still marveling at the genius of Ginger's rescue gambit, Biggles delivers his report and hands over the plans which Ginger had stolen from the enemy base. Hesterley tells them he has made arrangements for them to depart for England and gives specific instructions that they are to fly a direct course and head for Hendon. Chapter 16: A One-Sided Fight The Vandal takes off and heads for home. Blackbeard is soon in pursuit with four aircraft but nearing the English coast, a flight of Hawker Nimrod fighters from an aircraft carrier approach, driving the pursuers off, allowing Biggles and co. to reach Hendon safely. Chapter 17: The Raiders' Fate Some days later, Biggles tells the others that it is "all over". There had been a massive rehearsal of Blackbeard's air fleet raid. More than thirty flying boats had taken part, attempting to land at various points in Britain. The plans had gone wrong and most of the aircraft had crashed on landing. Biggles surmised that the British authorities had been forewarned by the plans Ginger had stolen and might have sabotaged or moved the landing lights. Meanwhile the members of the party all receive handsome rewards. Ginger gets 500 pounds which would go towards his education and flying lessons. Category:Plot summaries